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How to use Highlight by Part Number

Jakob B.
  • Updated

The Highlight by Part Number command can quickly locate and build a selection set of all instances of a part in your drawing.  

For example, your worksheet indicates you have six chairs in the projects, but you can only locate 5 of the chairs in the drawing. Where could the other chair be? You could use the highlight by part number command to confirm the number of chairs in drawing and create a selection set of those items.  

  1. Activate the Highlight by Part Number command either from the ribbon, toolbar, or the Office Menu Edit > Highlight by Part Number. 

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  2. On the command line, you will be prompted to enter the part number you wish to find. Type the complete part number and press Enter.

  3. The command line will now report how many objects were located that match the part number. The items should also be selected in the drawing which should help in seeing their locations. You also now have a selection set of all instances of those items if you needed to execute a command on all of them. For example, deleting all instances of a particular part number.


Highlight by Select

The Highlight by Select command allows you to select a part in the drawing and then it will select and highlight all instances of that item. 

  1. Activate the Highlight by Select command either from the ribbon, toolbar, or the Office Menu Edit > Highlight by Select

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  2. Your cursor will change to a pick box and the command line will prompt you to select an object. Click one of the parts in your drawing and press enter. 

  3. The command line will now report how many of the item it found, and they will become selected. 


AutoCAD: Use P for Previous Selection

After you have used either the Highlight by Part Number or Select to build a selection set of like items, you can then perform any AutoCAD command on them by using P for previous selection. For example, perhaps you need to move all instances of an items in the drawing to a new location. You could use either the highlight by select or part number command to get those items selected. After you could then use the AutoCAD move command. When the move command asks you to select the items you wish to move, simply type P and press enter. This will tell AutoCAD to use your previous selection set.

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